Bartered Bride Romance Collection (58 page)

She burst into laughter.

Gideon joined her.

When they finally caught their breath, Gideon said, “It’s intended as an insult, but the spelling shows how desperately the painter could use your lessons.”

The mistake provided a fun example in her spelling lesson for Margaret’s girls and brought many townspeople into the saloon to tease Gideon.

Bess noticed most of the men’s humor changed to anger when they spoke to Gideon. The anger seemed to center on a large tin can on the bar. Curious, she approached Gideon when the lesson was over. “What is the can for?”

“It’s the school and church fund.”

“What?” Surely she hadn’t heard right.

“Town needs a school and a church. No one wants to fund them, so Amos and I decided to do something about it.” She eyed him warily. “How?”

“Amos doesn’t provide service to anyone unless they contribute money or labor to the school and church. We figure one building will suffice for both.”

Bess shook the can. It rattled. She peeked inside. A handful of coins lay on the bottom. She raised her eyebrows and gave Gideon a skeptical look. “And Amos’s customers come here to make their contribution?”

Gideon grinned. “Nope. That’s my customers’ contributions. I have the same rules as Amos. I serve no one who doesn’t contribute.”

Bess wondered whether God would want money raised from selling liquor to be used for a house of worship.

“Maybe the money from here will go for the school part of the building,” Gideon suggested.

Obviously, he’d guessed her thoughts. “At this rate, it’s going to be a long time to afford even a small building.”

Bess’s doubts were soon banished. The other businessmen, furious that they had to pay above and beyond the normal price for Amos’s and Gideon’s goods and services, began to demand the same of their customers. Soon all the businesspeople required donations as a prerequisite to providing services. As the fund grew, everyone stopped being mad and grew excited.

One evening as dusk fell, Gideon slipped into a stiff new shirt, shaved for the second time that day, left the saloon in Harry’s care, and headed over to the Back Porch. “Mighty nice sunset, Miss Craig. Could I convince you to go walking with me?”

Was it wishful thinking, or did she look pleased at the invitation? He knew it pleased him when she said yes.

He wasn’t brave enough to jump right into his purpose in seeing her. “The school and church committee think we’ve enough money to begin plans,” he told her. The banker, lawyer, and Linus Hatch made up the committee. Gideon had thought Bess should be on it, but the other men didn’t agree. Bess suggested Gideon, but the other men didn’t agree to him either. Both Bess and Gideon were grateful the rest of the town was finally behind the project, regardless of who staffed the committee.

“I’m so glad. Have they decided where to build it?”

“At the end of the street, by Doc Mitchel and Llewellyn’s houses.”

They walked on in silence a few minutes, Gideon working up his courage. “I’m making some changes in my life, Miss Craig. I wanted to tell you about them before you heard about them from someone else.”

She stopped walking and turned to him, a question in her eyes and something that looked like fear in her face.

“Nothing awful,” he hurried to reassure her. “I’m quitting the saloon.”

“Quitting? Selling?”

He shook his head and laughed. “Can’t sell. My conscience won’t let me.” He risked reaching for her hand. Hope flickered when she gently returned the pressure of his fingers. “My life changed the day you walked into my saloon, Bess Craig. I watched you and saw that unconditional love of God you talked about lived out in your life.”

“Mine?” She looked stunned.

“Yours. You reached out to Walter and Regina and Margaret’s other girls—people others thought beneath them. You’ve changed their lives. You changed my life. I couldn’t deny God’s love when I saw you living it.”

Bess looked down at the ground. “You exaggerate my importance in God’s work.”

“I don’t agree. I don’t want to keep selling liquor. God’s opened my eyes. I can’t pretend anymore that liquor’s going to help men who are cut up inside. I was angry with God for a long time. I’m not angry at Him anymore.”

A beautiful smile brightened her face. “That’s the best news you could give me, Gideon.”

She didn’t seem to realize she’d used his given name. The sound of it on her lips stepped up his heartbeat. Did her heart beat faster, too?

“What will you do with the saloon?”

“I have an idea about that, but it depends on you.”

“Me?”

“Your Back Porch business has about outgrown the house. Do you think you’d like to expand it into a restaurant? We could build a kitchen in the saloon’s back room. There are already tables and chairs and lots of glasses.”

“It sounds perfect, but I’ll need to go over the figures and see whether we can afford to rent it from you. And, oh, where will you live? Do you want your house back?”

“I have an idea about that, too.”

He hesitated, rubbing his thumb across the back of her hand. “Yes?” she encouraged.

“I thought if you’re willing”—he swallowed hard—“we might court a bit. Until the church is built.” He reached for her other hand. “Then, if you find me passable, we might start that church out right with a wedding.”

Bess gasped.

He trembled. “Is that a no, Miss Craig?”

“No, but I can’t be accepting unless you’re willing to take in Bertie.”

He swept her into his arms, laughing, and twirled her about, the way he’d done back in May. “Never crossed my mind not to, Bess. I love you. I’m plumb loco with love for you.”

Her arms tightened about his neck, the sweet violet scent she wore filled his senses, and her soft laughter filled his ears. And then he heard the most beautiful words in the world. “I love you, too, Gideon Riker.”

Gideon stood before the simple altar at the front of the church completed only days earlier in a town church-raising. He held out his fist toward his best man. “Here,” he whispered.

Jim Collingswood frowned. “What is it?” he whispered back. “Reimbursement for the money paid Ellis Stack for Bess. A buck-fifty. Figure it’s only fair I pay for it, seeing she’s my bride.” Jim grinned. “Welcome to the family.”

Bess stood in the front of the new white church in Matty’s wedding dress as Harry played the first strains of “The Wedding March.” After one last hug from each of her sisters, Bess watched Matty start up the aisle, followed by Corrie. Bertie whispered, “I always knew you were sweet on Gideon.” She grinned and followed her sisters.

Bess stepped inside the church. Her gaze sought out Gideon. He met it, smiling, and the warmth in it wrapped around her heart. Imagine this strong, compassionate man loving her!

She’d never expected anything as wonderful as Gideon’s love to come from Ellis Stack’s mistake. She should have known—God doesn’t let mistakes happen. Ellis Stack’s mistake was a miracle of love in disguise.

Bess’s Eggless Cookies

½ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon baking soda

Flour to make thick enough to roll

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter

1 cup milk

Raisins or currants

Mix nutmeg and baking soda with 1 cup flour and set aside. Cream together sugar and butter. Mix in milk. Add flour mixture. Add more flour as needed to make the mixture thick enough to roll out.

Sprinkle with granulated sugar and roll over lightly with rolling pin. Then cut out and press a whole raisin in center of each; or when done very light brown, brush over while still hot with a soft bit of rag dipped in a thick syrup of sugar and water, sprinkle with currants, and return to oven for a moment. These require a quick oven if using a woodstove. For modern stoves, bake at 375 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes.

Recipe based on eggless cookie recipe from
Buckeye Cookery
, 1880.

JoAnn A. Grote lives in Minnesota where she grew up. She uses the state for most of her story settings, and like her characters, JoAnn seeks to serve Christ in her work. She believes that readers of novels can receive a message of salvation and encouragement from well-crafted fiction. An award-winning author, she has had more than thirty-five books published, including several novels published with Barbour Publishing in the Heartsong Presents line as well as in the American Adventure series for kids.

FROM ALARMING TO CHARMING

by Pamela Kaye Tracy

Dedication

In a book about sisters,
it only seems right to honor my own sisters.

To Roxanne Gould, the sister I recently found: I look forward to creating memories that concrete a family.
I wish we’d met sooner.

To Patti Osback, my very first sister-in-law:
You were the perfect matchmaker.
I thank God every day for you.

To Cathy McDavid and Alison Hentges,
the sisters of my heart:
Words cannot express the meaning of our friendship.

Chapter 1